Woollen Kits + Bed Wettin' Bad Boys

Photo by Dimity. Full set available at Two Point Eight.

Bed Wettin' Bad Boys played a set with Shortty (currently of Royal Headache fame) on drums. It's pretty cool that they switched things up but I definitely prefer it as just the 3 of them, it kinda took away from the amateur charm and made it all a bit stale.

Bed Wettin' Bad Boys - Gallery Bar, Sydney, 19/08/2010 - 41mb - 28 minutes

Woollen Kits came up to Sydney for the weekend to play a stack of free shows. The vocals sort of become over powering in the last song so everything else is mixed a bit lower throughout as a result, I might fix it later, but their brand of double-guitar-pop is just beautiful. First time getting to see them live so half the set was new music for it and I dug it all heaps.

Woollen Kits - Gallery Bar, Sydney, 19/08/2010 - 44.7mb - 31 minutes

First ever Absolute Boys show.

Long long ago I got to witness and record Absolute Boys first ever show supporting My Disco, Holy Balm and Royal Headache. The recording was great, and they were great, but this has been unavailable since then. But as of right now I'm allowed to put it back up so everyone can hear, and I cannot recommend it more. Give it a spin. Here's what I said at the time:

"Who are the Absolute Boys? I only found out who they "might" be the night before and this was enough to make me excited, 1 part Eucalpyt, 2 parts Ohana, and the result was fucking awesome. Got about half way through the intro to the first song before realising this was going to be a great band. Pretty sure this was their first show."

Minimalist awesome.

Absolute Boys - Oxford Art Factory, Sydney, 24/09/2009 - 30.54mb - 21 minutes

Sally Seltmann - Heart That's Pounding launch

I don't normally go to shows like this, but I was entertained and Sally Seltmann writes a damn fine song. Darren from the Avalanches was on the drums as well. She plays quite a few New Buffalo songs as well, crowd was strange, 30-somethings trying to hold on to their youth through FBi vs. Triple J mouth breathers. The type of crowd that when the performer asks for quiet spends the entire song shushing each other.

Sally Seltmann - Oxford Art Factory, Sydney, 23/07/2010 - 91mb - 1 hour 5 minutes

Circle Pit - Bruise Constellation Launch

Supported by Lost Animal, Dead Farmers and Bed Wettin' Bad Boys.

I only had enough battery to record two bands, so naturally I picked the head liner + the band I had never seen before.

Lost Animal was interesting, some great tunes, backed up by this bassist who has been playing in pretty much every Melbourne band to visit Sydney lately, I saw him play with Pikelet a few weeks ago and then with Pets With Pets last week, and now Lost Animal. This is a set I think would be really interesting to see played with a live band, even if it's all synths and sequencers, could be really cool.

Lost Animal - Oxford Art Factory, Sydney, 26/05/2010 - 38.1mb - 26 minutes

Circle Pit owned. They owned. Tight as hell, vocals were spot on, there was guitar troubles here and there but over all a fucking awesome performance. Bruise Constellation is so freaking good. Really stoked on this band right now. Can't really say much more to be honest, a must listen.

Circle Pit - Oxford Art Factory, Sydney, 26/05/2010 - 59.4mb - 42 minutes

Ghosts of Television last ever show

Supported by Dominic Talarico.

Arrived pretty late as I was at Yo La Tengo, so I missed Dominic.

Final show for Australia's best band? They did it perfectly. This show was fucking perfect. Not a single flaw, no better way to go out than the way Ghosts of Television did. Good to hear Know Weather for once as well.

Setlist
Hezbollah
New Flesh
Arhritis
Topsoil
Know Weather
Empty Thrones
Coelacanth
Juicy (Biggie)
Explosions
Buzzrd

Ghosts of Television - Gallery Bar, Sydney, 18/02/2010 - 63mb - 43 minutes

The Dodos

I've had some pretty bad lucky recording the Dodos, I've seen them 3 times and they've all screwed up, so 4th time lucky. The show was pretty great, turned into a request fest by about the second song. They were also just so stoked to be here. That intro you hear at the start is the sound of a Vibraphone being played by 4 bows.

The Dodos - Oxford Art Factory, Sydney, 13/02/2010 - 122.3mb - 1 hour 25 minutes

King Khan and the Shrines

Supported by Royal Headache.

Royal Headache were awesome, but I've decided that I've been recording them too much and feel pretty bad for it. I got the show but I'm not gonna put it up, gonna keep it that way for a while. They finally got their 7" coming out "soon" on RIP Society. Get on that shit.

King Khan and the Shrines were beyond awesome. 10 piece band crammed on to the OAF stage, a cheerleader, tight as hell playing and just some damn fine songs. Ending the main set with Know Your Product pretty much ensured everyone would go mental. I recorded this from up on the balcony to see if it would make sound any better and I'd say the results are damn fine. So stoked on this show, better than most things I saw last year.

Setlist
Intro
(How Can I Keep You) Outta Harms Way
Picking Up the Trash
Land of the Freak
Le Fils de Jacques Dutronc
Took My Lady to Dinner
Welfare Bread
Burnin Inside
I Wanna Be a Girl
Shivers Down My Spine
Stone Soup
Take a Trip
Know Your Product
Encore
Ghost Rider
No Regrets
Yes I Can't
Live Fast Die Strong

King Khan and the Shrines - Oxford Art Factory, Sydney, 06/01/2009 - 107mb - 1 hour 15 minutes

Rowland S. Howard album launch

Supported by DZ.

Can't stand DZ, so I went into the room next door and watched Megastick Fanfare.

Rowland S. Howard was pretty great, I only have Pop Crimes so I was pretty lost on anything that's not that but this show was great encouragement to go back and check it all out. Man... $27 is a lot.

Setlist
Pop Crimes
Dead Radio
Shut Me Down
She Cried
Wayward Man (False Start)
Wayward Man
Avé Maria
Life's What You Make It
The Golden Age of Bloodshed
Sleep Alone
Encore
Exit Everything
Autoluminescent

Rowland S. Howard - Oxford Art Factory, Sydney, 22/10/2009 - 105mb - 1 hour 15 minutes

My Disco at Oxford Art Factory

Supported by Royal Headache, Holy Balm and Absolute Boys.

Who are the Absolute Boys? I only found out who they "might" be the night before and this was enough to make me excited, 1 part Eucalpyt, 2 parts Ohana, and the result was fucking awesome. Got about half way through the intro to the first song before realising this was going to be a great band. Pretty sure this was their first show.

Absolute Boys - Oxford Art Factory, Sydney, 24/09/2009 - 30.54mb - 21 minutes

Holy Balm were up next, first time I've had a chance to record these peeps, they are awesome but it was a bit messy. Still enjoyed.

Holy Balm - Oxford Art Factory, Sydney, 24/09/2009 - 32.31mb - 23 minutes

Yes I know I only saw Royal Headache 7 days ago but I was pretty excited to see them play in front of such a big crowd, and they nailed it.

Setlist
Splash
Eloise
Girls
Red Rocket
Don't Want To
Two Kinds of Love
Never Again
Surprise
Honeyjoy
Psychotic Episode

Royal Headache - Oxford Art Factory, Sydney, 24/09/2009 - 31.6mb - 22 minutes

I haven't seen My Disco since November last year but dayum, tonight was better than I've ever seen them. Each and every time they started a new song juuust before it started to drag out and kept it pretty tight, was probably also the quietest I've seen them play. I'm doing the set list off memory so let me know what's wrong.

Setlist
New Song
New Song
You Came to Me Like a Cancer Lain Dormant Until It Blossomed Like a Rose
Land
Unknown
New Song

My Disco - Oxford Art Factory, Sydney, 24/09/2009 - 57.7mb - 40 minutes

High Places

Supported by Beaches and supporting Dan Deacon.

I didn't record any one else during the night but High Places are pretty damn fun live. The girl is a babe and the night over all was a lot of fun. This was a part of Summertones. Once the music actually starts it gets louder.

High Places - Oxford Art Factory, Sydney, 27/02/2009 - 47mb - 33 minutes

Fuck Buttons/Dead Meadow/Afrirampo ATP Sideshow

Seriously, what a fucking line up. Won't see anything like this again.

Afrirampo were really an interesting bunch, had I written this the night afterwards I would have more to say, but currently it's 9 months after this show happened, but between this show and the ATP set they provided some very memorable moments.

For just three guys, Dead Meadow put out an awesome sound. This show had some genuinely awesome moments, while the rest were just damn solid moments.

Dead Meadow - Oxford Art Factory, Sydney, 15/01/2009 - 61.2mb - 51 minutes

Despite the terrible reviews I had been hearing, I really really enjoyed Fuck Buttons. Everything you've heard about their live show is totally wrong. And that last song (which now I think was an early version of Surf Solar) is fucking awesome.

Fuck Buttons - Oxford Art Factory, Sydney, 15/01/2009 - 62.4mb - 52 minutes

Clockcleaner Australian Tour

Supported by The Disbelievers and those other bands that always play Oxford Art Factory.

This was the same night as the Die! Die! Die! show and I opted to go to the OAF show over the Dirty Shirlows (I think? Louie's?) so I could see Ohana. They weren't due on to 2am and it wasn't really worth it. They were alright I suppose but yeah. Shit gets old fast.

Clockcleaner - Oxford Art Factory, Sydney, 29/11/2008 - 45.7mb - 39minutes

Qua and Mountains in the Sky Double Album Launch

Supported by Ohana.

Ohana are by far my favourite Australian band. This is only 1 of 2 recordings I managed to nab of them before their hiatus. It's a bit iffy but the performance is as great as any Ohana show.

Ohana - Oxford Art Factory, Sydney, 06/11/2009 - 31.7 mb - 25 minutes

Next up was a sort of round robin set between Qua and Mountains in the Sky. They basically just swapped instruments, played 3 or so songs each, swapped again, did some improv on each other songs, and then came together for some messy jam at the end. It was amazing and I doubt they'll ever do it again. They also had some comedian (I guess?) break up the set. Only time I've seen Qua with a live drummer. Needs to be done more often.

Qua & Mountains in the Sky - Oxford Art Factory, Sydney, 06/11/2009 - 139mb - 1 hour 56 minutes